For Hannity, Presidential Criticism Only Stops At The Border For Bush

Fox News' Sean Hannity hosted former Republican New Hampshire Governor John Sununu to attack President Obama during his trip to Israel. But during the Bush administration, Hannity attacked progressives for criticizing the president while he was out of the country.

On his March 20 Fox show, Sean Hannity and Sununu criticized the president over his trip to Israel. Hannity claimed he was grateful for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's presence because "at least there was one adult in the room" and "one adult that understands the nature of -- the battle of -- the conflict between good and evil in our time." Hannity went on to claim that, while the leaders appeared friendly,"there's no way [Netanyahu] doesn't see through this president's b.s." Sununu added that Obama was "clumsy" in his handling of foreign policy and that Obama could not be trusted when it came to foreign policy. Hannity agreed, calling Obama "a demagogue, he lies with abandon and the media doesn't call him out on it. I don't trust him. I don't believe what he says, I think he's phony":

But in 2001, Hannity attacked then-Democratic Senator Tom Daschle of South Dakota for criticizing President George W. Bush while Bush was overseas. In August 2001, Daschle said of Bush's foreign policy leadership: "Instead of asserting our leadership, we are abdicating it. Instead of shaping international agreements to serve our interests, we have removed ourselves from a position to shape them at all." On the August 14, 2001, edition of Hannity & Colmes (accessed via Nexis), Hannity played Daschle's comments and responded by saying "when a president goes overseas, criticism stops at the border. He gets support from both sides of the aisle":

HANNITY: So are the Democrats compromising the United States position with their own rhetoric, or are these attacks valid?

[...]

Flavia, you know, this is the same Tom Daschle -- you know, we usually -- when a president goes overseas, criticism stops at the border. He gets support from both sides of the aisle. But that wasn't the case with Tom Daschle. When the president went on a recent trip to Europe, he was en route there, he made these critical remarks. And as -- as I thought Trent Lott appropriately said, Daschle needs his training wheels because certainly, he's not in a position to handle the new power he's found.